| Benson Street | |||||||||||||||||||||
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The Benson Street station in May 2011, during the final stages of restoration and conversion. |
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| Station statistics | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Address | Benson Street in center of Glen Ridge, New Jersey | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Lines | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Levels | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Platforms | 2 ground-level | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Tracks | 2 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Other information | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Opened | 1883[1] | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Closed | September 20, 2002[2] | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Electrified | Not electrified | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Code | 1735 (Erie Railroad)[3] | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Owned by | Norfolk Southern (formerly Erie Railroad, Conrail, New Jersey Transit) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Formerly | Glen Ridge,[4] Chestnut Hill | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Services | |||||||||||||||||||||
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The Benson Street Station is an inactive train station that is located in the town of Glen Ridge, New Jersey. The station was a former stop on the Boonton Line, which runs from Hoboken Terminal to Hackettstown, reaching Benson Street in the middle of the residential portion. Benson Street was constructed in 1883 in a unique English Tudor design with stucco facades and a slate roof.[1] Benson Street had a two platform, two track station with the gas lights on the side of tracks.[4] Service was discontinued to Benson Street Station (along with Rowe Street in Bloomfield and Arlington in Kearny) on September 20,[2] 2002 when the Montclair Connection was opened.[5] Train service to Glen Ridge is serviced to the south at Glen Ridge station in the downtown commercial district.
In May 2009, the Benson Street station was sold into private hands by New Jersey Transit to rehabilitate the aging structure, and the new owners began stabilizing the structure which had been damaged by a fire in the 1980s and was in serious disrepair. On December 2, 2009, after a review from the New Jersey State Historical Preservation Organization, the new owners received the go-ahead to begin preliminary reconstruction of the former Benson Street Station. This rehabilitation project starts by restructuring the basement of the building.[6] By June 2010, the station had received new gutters, new walls and brand new roofing. Parts of the building's first floor paneling was kept, although the second story requires brand new paneling as it is converted into a new single family home.[1]